Accident
by OnexLostxSoul
Summary: Seven-year-old Zuko really didn’t think much of it when he saw Lu Ten’s wife with her stomach a little swelled. That is, until he heard the news of the baby's conception... and death. After that, he wondered whenever he heard the word ‘accident’.


**(A/N: Told from the perspective of Zuko. Enjoy.)**

Seven-year-old Zuko really didn't think much of it when he saw Lu Ten's wife with her tummy a little swelled. After all, the palace food was delicious and anyone could be coaxed into feeding from its delicious goodness. Perhaps she had overindulged a little, like Uncle Iroh often did with sweet dumplings! He played, laughed, and bounced around as he always had. Iroh and Lu Ten were back from the war for the time being, and everything was good again. Everything was in order. Mother would sit with him in the gardens, Azula would play hide-and-go-seek with him (and cheat, in young Zuko's opinion), and Lu Ten would tell him fascinating tales at bedtime about dragons and warriors and pirates galore. Iroh would urge him to drink bitter leaf-juice and play board games that seemed to be a lost cause. Uncle always won. Lu Ten's wife, or Auntie Daiyu as he was used to calling her, would sometimes sit with him in the courtyard and read him poems from one of her little books. He wasn't really interested in the poems very much, but Auntie Daiyu had a sweet voice that was perfect for lying in the grass and watching the clouds roll by. Yes, everything was right in the Fire Nation palace.

That is, until one day. Something changed. Lu Ten ran out of the palace infirmary screaming and babbling his head off. At first, Zuko was concerned. Was something wrong with Auntie? She _had _been throwing up an awful lot lately. And she was still gaining weight! How was _that _supposed to work? When Lu Ten reached Ursa and Zuko at the pond, the seven-year-old stared wide-eyed with anxiousness. That is, until he saw the smile on his cousin's face. Once he'd caught his breath, Lu Ten stood up straight and proudly proclaimed, "Princess Ursa! I'm going to be a father!"

Zuko's mother let out a joyous cry, and rose to embrace the boy with tears in her eyes. At first, Zuko was a little confused. Lu Ten? A father? His older cousin turned to face him, lifting him up and tossing him in the air. Zuko adored that. Lu Ten set him down and knelt to meet his gaze, happiness shining in his eyes. "Zuko, you're going to have a friend to play with very soon. Your Auntie Daiyu is going to have a baby!"

"A baby?" The young prince's eyes grew wide. He could remember when Azula had been a baby. Mother's attention had been torn away from him as she tended to the newborn, leaving very little time for Zuko. That was certainly not what he wanted to happen between him and Lu Ten. "Does this mean… we won't get to hang out anymore?" The young boy's eyes filled with sadness at the thought. His cousin Lu Ten was his favorite to play with! He always had energy, and was really interested in hearing the things Zuko thought. Who would he talk to now?

Lu Ten seemed a little shocked by the question, though he quickly shook his head and enveloped Zuko in his warm embrace. "Of course not, silly. We're always going to be best friends, I promise. When the new baby is born, he or she is going to need you to play with! You need to teach the baby how to speak and walk and-"

"Firebend?" Zuko asked excitedly, perking up at the possibility of a young friend. Perhaps even a boy! They could play together and he probably wouldn't cheat like Azula did…

Lu Ten's face went a little pale. "Maybe not firebend. Not for a few years, at least."

Zuko did the math that night. When the baby was three, he would be ten. He would be able to babysit at that age! When the baby was six, he would be thirteen. The perfect ages for learning how to firebend or how to eat with chopsticks! It would be like having a little brother or sister! And since Lu Ten and Daiyu were raising the baby, it would grow up to be much nicer than Azula.

Everyone seemed excited about the news. Firelord Azulon hosted an entire feast to celebrate the pregnancy. Iroh was jollier than usual, and Lu Ten couldn't stop smiling. He would lay out against the willow tree in the central courtyard, with Daiyu lying between his legs, and he would stroke her belly as she read. As Mother put it, she was "glowing". She didn't seem to be radiating any spontaneous light to young Zuko, but he merely shrugged it off as an expression older people used. Ursa was often conspiring with Auntie about things such as "nursery colors" and "cribs". Zuko would just be thankful if the child had all ten fingers and toes! Zuko made sure to make his Auntie breakfast every once in a while, a little hurt when she ended up vomiting it all over the washroom floor. Lu Ten reminded him that it was something a woman did often when she was with child. Zuko sighed with relief, for he'd thought that his smiley face made out of fruit was rather clever.

There was one person who didn't seem very happy, and that was Father. At dinnertimes, he often glared at Daiyu's belly and exchanged cold looks with Lu Ten. Zuko couldn't understand why his father didn't like the idea of Lu Ten as a dad. He thought his cousin would be great at raising a kid! But then again, Father was hardly ever happy about good news concerning Iroh's half of the family. Maybe he was jealous? He shouldn't be! He already had two kids! As a matter of fact, Azula was always slinking about when Lu Ten and Daiyu were around. She didn't look too happy either. Zuko thought she would have enjoyed having someone else to pick on! Zuko shrugged it off as a delayed reaction.

His favorite part of the day came when Daiyu would let him sit next to her stomach and talk to the baby, stroking his hair as he did so. Lu Ten claimed that the baby could hear him, even through the flesh, so Zuko wanted to make sure he made friends with the life-form early on. He talked about his schooling and other activities, asking unanswered questions and making brotherly promises. Once, when his hand was resting on Auntie's stomach, he felt a soft thump. He withdrew his hand with a cry, turning to Lu Ten and informing him that something was wrong inside of his wife. The older prince was concerned at first, only to be calmed by Daiyu's assurance.

"That was the baby giving a little kick, Zuko. The baby wants you to know that it's listening, and wants to meet you very much." Lu Ten and Daiyu exchanged smiles. From what the boy could gather, it was the baby's first such movement.

For a very long time, things were great. Zuko was happier than ever, because Daiyu's baby gave Lu Ten and Uncle a reason to stay home. Regardless of how the baby ended up in Auntie's stomach in the first place (such a question earned him only stuttering from Lu Ten), he was dying for the baby to emerge however it managed to.

Things changed again one night. Things changed for the worse. Mother came into his bedroom really late, rousing the sleeping boy out of bed and dressing him in his clothes. She took the half-lidded prince into her arms and went rushing down the hall, whispering words such as 'accident', 'Daiyu', and 'stairs'. Zuko was hurried into the palace infirmary where he saw cousin Lu Ten in a nervous wreck, pacing around the corridor as he wiped the sweat from his face. Iroh was seated, unusually solemn, as he held Azula in his arms. Zuko didn't see Father anywhere.

Hours passed, but Zuko was too scared to fall asleep again. He didn't ask any questions. The circumstances simply didn't allow it. Azula kept her eyes fixed on the ground, which Zuko found curious. Usually when something was wrong, they could communicate silently with expressions and eye contact in a way only a brother and a sister could. This was fishy, to say the least. By morning, Lu Ten was called by a man with a mask on. His cousin bolted into the room where they were keeping Daiyu, the relief apparent on his face. Mother held Zuko all the tighter as they awaited some sort of news.

Seven-year-old Zuko's heart fell in his chest when Lu Ten emerged into the waiting room, tears running down his face. The boy wanted to ask how Auntie was, but bit his lip and waited for his cousin to speak. Lu Ten looked up, though his eyes were glazed and far off. Finally he whispered, "Daiyu lost the baby."

Zuko didn't see Lu Ten or Auntie for a really long time after that. They were "grieving", as Uncle Iroh explained in a sad voice. Zuko didn't understand. Babies didn't just disappear! His hopes and dreams about a little brother had been crushed! A week after the accident, Mother visited him in his room. He looked up at her with pleading eyes, trying to figure out what was going on. With a sigh, she opened her arms and allowed Zuko to snuggle up against her. She explained that night to him, her eyes full of heartbreaking misery that made her son want to cry. Apparently, Daiyu woke up feeling sick and decided to take a walk. Azula met her at the stairwell and started asking her to read her a bedtime story. She tugged on Auntie's robes a little too hard, causing her to trip and fall down the stairs.

"We're very lucky that Auntie Daiyu survived. It's a dangerous thing to fall down stairs. Unfortunately, falling can cause harm to a baby inside of the mother's stomach. A baby is a lot more fragile than you and I. It couldn't survive."

Zuko's cheeks were wet with tears that night. He couldn't stand the thought of it. The baby didn't even get a chance to live! He punched his pillow and buried his head into it, stricken by the unfairness of it all. How could this happen?!

Father smirked during dinners now. Azula kept to herself, her eyes cold as she picked at her food. Lu Ten and Iroh were sent off to war again, as though there had never even been a baby. Zuko sat with Daiyu more often, resolving to act like the son she never had. He was sure she appreciated his efforts, for she would always smile and let him nestle into her slender form when he stopped by.

On the day Lu Ten never returned from war, he looked from Father's smirk to Azula's smug grin. They were identical to the expressions worn after the death of Daiyu's baby. After that, he wondered whenever he heard the word 'accident'.


End file.
